Scugog digs deep for solutions against commercial fill

Fill symposium held at Scugog Community Centre

Scugog digs deep for solutions against commercial fill

Celia Klemenz / Metroland

PORT PERRY -- Larry Doble, and Patrick Dovigi, of Green for Life, right, read a Power Point presentation offered by speaker Moreen Miller, centre, of Ontario Stone, Sand and Gravel Association, on January 25, at a 2013 managing large-scale fill symposium at the Scugog Community Recreation Centre. January 25, 2013

SCUGOG -- As countless loads of commercial fill are being dumped in the countryside north of the GTA and contaminated fill continues to threaten the integrity of underground water sources, Scugog Township decided to dig a little deeper in hopes of finding a solution.

On Friday, Jan. 25, Scugog Township and Kawartha Conservation held a large-scale fill symposium to discuss large fill operations, consequences, possible solutions and next steps. Nearly 300 people attended.

"The movement of soil from the GTA to countryside municipalities has become a significant issue to the people," said Scugog Mayor Chuck Mercier. "There are eight million truckloads consumed every year and large fill operations have been moving to the countryside. I challenge any of you to follow up with any development site and tell me where that soil originated from; you will be surprised by the limited information."

Scugog Township held the meeting after recently dealing with two large fill operations. In 2010, the Township endured a lengthy battle with Earthworx Industries, which saw truckloads of fill dumped at 13741 Lakeridge Rd. Earthworx claimed it did not need to adhere to Scugog's bylaws because the operation fell under federal jurisdiction.

More recently, politicians were informed of the Greenbank Airways' expansion plans, which will result in an estimated 2.5 million cubic metres of soil trucked to the site. Airport officials worked with the Township. As part of the agreement between the Township and the airport, the two sides have agreed to meet on a regular basis and take a look at what's happened at the site, what's coming up and to address any community concerns.

While Earthworx Industries dumped fill at the Lakeridge Road site, politicians and local residents reached out to Earthroots, a conservation organization that works to preserve the wilderness, wildlife, and watersheds in Canada, with a bigger focus on Ontario.

According to Josh Garfinkel, senior campaigner of Earthroots, two and a half years ago, the organization wasn't even aware of large fill operations within the Oak Ridges Moraine.

"Something isn't working in our government when citizens are turning to small non-profits for assistance," he said.

Last year, Earthroots launched a campaign to stop major threats to the moraine, with the biggest risk being commercial fill operations.

Mr. Garfinkel noted that the integrity of the soil that is being dumped is very important, as it eventually makes its way into underground water. More than a quarter of the people living on the moraine depend on safe well water, he said.

The Oak Ridges Moraine stretches for more than 160 kilometres across the most populated areas of Ontario. The moraine provides drinking water to more than a quarter of a million people with private and municipal wells. "Ten years ago, no one would predict that hundreds of trucks a day would be shipping fill to this area," he said. "Fill isn't new but the magnitude of how much is being moved around is."

According to Gord Miller, environmental commissioner of Ontario, 25 million cubic metres of fill is estimated to be dumped in Ontario each year.

But Mr. Miller noted that the problem of commercial fill starts at the development sites in Toronto and beyond.

"This is not about filling, it is about digging holes," he said. "Why do we dig holes? Condos, the first thing they do is dig a massive hole for parking, six stories deep, to truck it down here to give you people problems. Our world is drowned by parking and most of the time it doesn't even get used. We dig holes to build residences; sometimes we dig holes and move dirt for no good reason."

According to Mr. Miller, the massive amount of dirt that comes from large development sites is the result of economics, as it's more expensive to work the excess soil into the design of a development.

"It is cheaper to throw it into a truck and when it turns around the corner, their problem disappears and comes up here."

But, time and space are two major factors in the business of fill, he said. According to Mr. Miller, the fill that is taken from various sites could be effectively reused 10 to 15 years from now but "urgency comes into play.

"Just find somewhere, is the result," he said.

Mr. Miller noted that there are opportunities for improvement. He said parking requirements must be reconsidered and municipalities need to increase fees for local fill operations, which could potentially decrease the number of sites.

Ultimately, the battle against commercial fill is currently left in the hands of the municipalities that may be armed with a fill bylaw, ensuring a fee can be obtained for each truckload dumped. But municipalities don't police where the fill is placed, or how much.

The MOE oversees environmental concerns, but it doesn't govern the placement of fill and according to Mr. Miller, the MOE is not the proper mechanism to deal with the issue.

"Let's put the monkey on the right back, not the MOE," he said. "Why have people in rural Ontario bought this problem? The big holes are largely the result of the policies of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Infrastructure, they drive this kind of development...That is the problem, it is not your problem. Let's get it solved at Queen's Park and downtown Toronto. We have the solutions."